ABOUT THE COVER Computer Graphics: Defining the Literal Meaning of Images Hans Westman Computer Graphics Cover Editor A picture is worth a thousand words. Everybody has heard the phrase. I read pictures. I look at them and I hear words, describing what I see, telling me a story, about a place and a time. The influence words have in forming and enhancing content for the visual arts is without boundaries and allows us to see and experience the most fantastic of worlds and events. As savvy consumers, our expectations are high. Vision gives rise to progress. The marketplace absorbs our vision and gives it back through the process of supply and demand. Thus we help define the content in media through our preferences and our literary habits. Tolkien ™s trilogy The Lord of Rings is a perfect example of how filmmakers like Peter Jackson, hand in hand with technology, have been able to bring those literary visions to the screen. What Jackson has accomplished on film is astounding, as is seen in the character Gollum, illustrated on the front cover. Through Jackson ™s interpretation and through the performance of Andy Serkis, Gollum emerges from the depths of Tolkien ™s story. Behind the scenes, there was a team of skilled artists, programmers and technicians working together to make that happen. Remington Scott, digital artist and performance director for motion capture, was one of those people. His article, œSparking Life: Notes on the Performance Capture Sessions for The Lord of The Rings: The Two Towers,  helps us understand how the transformation was made in œThe Two Towers  to bring both Gollum and the massive battle scenes to life using MOCAP (motion capture) technology. Words extend our vision of the projected image. Scholars, poets and philosophers have contributed to our literary heritage, defining the significance and consequence of language. At Florida Atlantic University, under the guidance of Poet Laureate Dr. Edmund Skellings (back cover), the Center for Electronic Communication is bringing the worlds of words and computer graphics together. Professor Francis McAfee has written an informative article, œComputer Graphics Research in the Humanities at the Center for Electronic Communication.  He describes the work being done at the Center and the programs they offer, which teach students that at the foundation of any good story, a word is really worth a thousand pictures. Front Cover Image courtesy of New Line Cinema. Back Cover Image courtesy of the Center for Electronic Communication. About the Cover Editor Hans Westman has been active as an artist and educator in both Sweden and the U.S. since 1976. He discovered animation as an art form in the late ˜70s, which resulted in an experimental film entitled Unitism. In 1987 he was exposed to computer manipulated imagery and has been working professionally with the medium ever since. He is currently the Academic Department Director for Media Arts & Animation at The Art Institute of Pittsburgh. Hans Westman Academic Department Director Media Arts & Animation The Art Institute of Pittsburgh 420 Boulevard of the Allies Pittsburgh, PA 15219-1328 Tel: +1-412-291-6409 Email: hans.westman@gte.net November 2003

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